EE switches on 4G in 14 more towns, aims to connect commuters

It's off the rails

EE has announced further expansion of its 4G network, covering major travel routes, airports, and several towns.

The company activated 4G in 14 more towns, including Belper, Cannock, Grangemouth, Harrowgate, Richmond, and Torquay.

This brings the total number of towns and cities with 4GEE to 174, covering 70 per cent of the UK population.

On track

EE will be rolling out 4G to a number of busy rail routes this year, including the London Euston to Birmingham New Street line, a line north to Manchester and Liverpool, and another line south from London Victoria to Brighton.

Later this year a line going up to Glasgow will complete the firm's ambitions for 2014, but further expansion is expected in the coming years.

4GEE will also be available by the end of summer for those travelling to France on the Eurotunnel.

Aiming high

For those waiting to travel overseas, EE has turned on 4G at 18 major UK airports, including Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted, Birmingham, Manchester, Edinburgh, Newcastle, Nottingham East Midlands, and Belfast International.

EE has also promised to spend £275 million this year on improving the call quality of its network. Busy roads like the M25, M1, M4, M6, M8, and M74 will all see improvements by summer, with several more getting a quality and reliability boost by the end of the year.

The announcement is part of a wider effort to bring 4G to most of the UK's population, thanks to a £1.4 billion investment in the technology. EE also unveiled a network sharing deal with Three earlier this month.